BTO migration blog

Spring and autumn are exciting times for anyone who watches birds. Here on this blog we will make predictions about when to expect migrant arrivals and departures, so that you know when and where to see these well-travelled birds.

Friday, 21 April 2017

Here come the Cuckoos!

The stop-start nature of this spring's migration has continued over the past week but breaks in the weather fronts allowed through a nice flurry of Ring Ouzels with over 60 records yesterday alone. Over the past week Ring Ouzels have been reported from the Isle of Wight to Edinburgh with 17 at Burnham Overy in Norfolk on the 20th April and 27 in the Cot Valley in Cornwall on the 18th April. Wheatears also arrived in good numbers and the graph below from BirdTrack shows that after a lag earlier on, the percentage of BirdTrack users seeing Wheatear has now caught up with the average for this time of year.

This is the best time of year to look out for Red-rumped Swallow and right on cue there have been half a dozen or so sightings over the past week. If you're visiting any coastal locations or freshwater marshes over the coming week look out for Swallows with very pale (sometimes reddish) rumps!

With high pressure dominating through well into next week we can expect a good arrival of migrants. We should see Pied Flycatcher, Whimbrel, Yellow Wagtail, Hobby and Arctic Tern all arriving in good numbers and more of our Turtle Doves returning too. We are receiving more reports now of House Martins returning to their nest sites, if you have any breeding near you then we need your help with our House Martin nest survey.

Three of our satellite-tagged Cuckoos are back in Europe now with one already back at his breeding grounds in the UK. Over the next two to three weeks we'll be heading rapidly towards the peak for Cuckoo records so if you want to hear a Cuckoo this year, this is the time to get out and listen. If you're very lucky you may even encounter an early Bee-eater, Squacco Heron or Purple Heron and it is worth looking out for rarer waders like Pectoral Sandpiper and Marsh Sandpiper stopping off on passage.

Cuckoo by Robin Lee

Over the course of the weekend, a cold weather front moving from north to south through Britain could produce a decent 'fall' of grounded migrants. Saturday morning looks like your best bet to head to a coastal watch point to witness this phenomenon for yourself, especially if there is a little rain early on . There is the potential for much colder weather early next week, with snow over much of Scotland and down to central England. How will our recently arrived migrants (and early breeders) cope with this cold snap?